Is Weight Loss Surgery the "Easy Way Out?"

04/04/24 • 1 min

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit virginiasolesmith.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to Indulgence Gospel After Dark! It's time for your April Extra Butter!

This month we’re answering a thorny mix of listener questions:

Do we ever get tempted to buy back into diet culture?

Is weight-loss surgery (and meds) not “doing it the old-fashioned way?”

And what should you say when your daughter’s pants don’t fit—and she hates all her other clothes?

Both of these letters bring up a lot of complicated issues. CW for discussions of intentional weight loss, anti-fat rhetoric and weight loss surgery.

If you are already an Extra Butter subscriber, you’ll have this entire episode in your podcast feed and access to the entire transcript in your inbox and on the Burnt Toast Substack. To get all of the links and resources mentioned in this episode, as well as a complete transcript, visit our show page.

Otherwise, to hear the whole conversation or read the whole transcript, you'll need to join Extra Butter. It's $99 per year, and is the hands down best way to keep Burnt Toast an ad- and sponsor-free space.

PS. Don't forget to order Fat Talk: Parenting In the Age of Diet Culture! Get your signed copy now from Split Rock Books (they ship anywhere in the USA). You can also order it from your independent bookstore, or from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Target, Kobo or anywhere you like to buy books. (Or get the UK edition or the audiobook!)

Disclaimer: Virginia and Corinne are humans with a lot of informed opinions. They are not nutritionists, therapists, doctors, or any kind of healthcare providers. The conversation you're about to hear and all of the advice and opinions they give are just for entertainment, information, and education purposes only. None of this is a substitute for individual medical or mental health advice.

CREDITS

The Burnt Toast Podcast is produced and hosted by Virginia Sole-Smith (follow her on Instagram) and Corinne Fay, who also runs @SellTradePlus, an Instagram account where you can buy and sell plus size clothing. The Burnt Toast logo is by

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit virginiasolesmith.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to Indulgence Gospel After Dark! It's time for your April Extra Butter!

This month we’re answering a thorny mix of listener questions:

Do we ever get tempted to buy back into diet culture?

Is weight-loss surgery (and meds) not “doing it the old-fashioned way?”

And what should you say when your daughter’s pants don’t fit—and she hates all her other clothes?

Both of these letters bring up a lot of complicated issues. CW for discussions of intentional weight loss, anti-fat rhetoric and weight loss surgery.

CREDITS

Previous Episode

We Need a Fat American Girl Doll

Today Virginia is chatting with Mary Mahoney, co-host of the Dolls of Our Lives podcast, co-author of Dolls Of Our Lives: Why We Can’t Quit American Girl, and author of Landline.

Dolls Of Our Lives is available in the Burnt Toast Bookshop!

Don’t forget, you can always take 10 percent off that purchase if you also order (or have already ordered!) Fat Talk from Split Rock Books! (Just use the code FATTALK at checkout.)

To get all of the links and resources mentioned in this episode, as well as a complete transcript, visit our show page. (This one is really good -- old magazine scans! text threads and old family photos documenting Virginia's Samantha doll trauma!)

If you want more conversations like this one, please rate and review us in your podcast player! And become a paid Burnt Toast subscriber to get all of Virginia's reporting and bonus subscriber-only episodes.

And don’t forget to check out our new Burnt Toast Podcast Bonus Content!

Disclaimer: Virginia is a journalist and human with a lot of informed opinions. Virginia is not a nutritionist, therapist, doctor, or any kind of health care provider. The conversation you're about to hear and all of the advice and opinions she and her guests give are just for entertainment, information, and education purposes only. None of this is a substitute for individual medical or mental health advice.

FAT TALK is out! Order your signed copy from Virginia's favorite independent bookstore, Split Rock Books (they ship anywhere in the US!). Or order it from your independent bookstore, or from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Target, or Kobo or anywhere else you like to buy books. You can also order the audio book from Libro.fm or Audible.

CREDITS

The Burnt Toast Podcast is produced and hosted by Virginia Sole-Smith. Follow Virginia on Instagram. Burnt Toast transcripts and essays are edited and formatted by Corinne Fay, who runs @SellTradePlus, an Instagram account...

Next Episode

We Are Not Seeking Closet Perfection.

Introducing the Unflattering x Burnt Toast Style Challenge! Corinne and Virginia are joined by Dacy Gillespie, stylist and author of the Unflattering newsletter to talk about why style challenges can feel like diets and what we're going to do differently. (No but really!)

To get all of the links and resources mentioned in this episode, as well as a complete transcript, visit our show page.

Also, don't forget to order Fat Talk: Parenting In the Age of Diet Culture! Get your signed copy now from Split Rock Books (they ship anywhere in the USA). You can also order it from your independent bookstore, or from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Target, Kobo or anywhere you like to buy books. (Or get the UK edition or the audiobook!)

Disclaimer: Virginia, Corinne and Dacy are humans with a lot of informed opinions. They are not nutritionists, therapists, doctors, or any kind of healthcare providers. The conversation you're about to hear and all of the advice and opinions they give are just for entertainment, information, and education purposes only. None of this is a substitute for individual medical or mental health advice.

CREDITS

Today’s Indulgence Gospel was produced and hosted by Corinne, Dacy, and Virginia. You can follow Corinne @selltradeplus. Dacy is @mindful closet and her Substack newsletter is unflattering and Virginia is @V_SoleSmith on Instagram.

The Burnt Toast logo is by Deanna Lowe.

Our theme music is by Jeff Bailey and Chris Maxwell.

Tommy Harron is our audio engineer.

Thanks for listening and for supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit virginiasolesmith.substack.com/subscribe